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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. rule — government
  3. scale — in music
  4. rule — a law
  5. field — a subject
  6. game — wild animals
  7. object — to protest
  8. tube — the underground
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. game — a match
  11. craft — a skill
  12. field — for sport
  13. mate — a partner
  14. tube — a container
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. object — a thing
  18. mate — to breed
  19. craft — boats
  20. object — an aim
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. mate — a friend
  24. scale — size or range

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com